


My Brother is an Octopus!

by Prompto_Cam



Category: Final Fantasy XV
Genre: Brotherhood, Chocobros as kids, Family Feels, Octomer AU, Sibling Love, it's just self-indulgent fluff guys, mild depiction of autism, no beta we die like men, very mild
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-11-23
Updated: 2018-11-23
Packaged: 2019-08-26 19:15:52
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 5,410
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16687393
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Prompto_Cam/pseuds/Prompto_Cam
Summary: When Regis finds a dead Octomer, he doesn't expect to also find her unharmed child. Heespeciallydoesn't expect his son to take a liking to the ocean creature... or for them to end up keeping him.Living with an Octomer is... interesting.





	My Brother is an Octopus!

**Author's Note:**

> HEAVILY inspired by Mintfoxmimi's octomer AU! :D Have a look at her artwork, it's beautiful! [And here is Ignis' design](http://mintfoxmimi.tumblr.com/image/162811112740).
> 
> Also please note that this is my first attempt at writing a somewhat autistic character. I tried my best to do my research but take it with a pinch of salt please ;w;
> 
> This fanfic has been personally arrpoved by the one, the only, [MOON_RACCOON_EXE](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Moon_Raccoon_exe/profile)!

Summer in Lucis was passing, green foliage fading into gold and orange hues. The temperature was dropping steadily, giving way to Autumn winds. Living near the ocean, there was always a gentle breeze rolling off the sea; it was a far cry from what life was like in the big city.

Regis Lucis Caelum had moved out here almost a year ago. After losing his wife, living in the city had brought forth nothing but painful memories and he had been eager to escape them. He could run his business from here, returning to the city only rarely; besides, his son Noctis was _fascinated_ by the ocean. He loved to go out on the boat to watch the seals that regularly beached on a small island off the coast. He loved any and all creatures of the sea.

Noctis Lucis Caelum wasn't a particularly... _easy_ child. At five years old, he was actually an incredibly antisocial child; he didn't seem to be able to connect with other kids, often choosing solitude over building friendships. Astrals know Regis had tried. Noctis was alright with Gladiolus Amicitia, the son of his closest friend, though it had taken a long time for him to warm up to the seven year old. Yesterday he had tried to introduce Noctis to nine year old Lunafreya Nox Fleuret, the daughter of another close friend of his.

It had been an utter disaster. The ensuing tantrum had been very explosive, unlike anything Regis had seen from Noctis before. His son had hidden himself away in a closet and _refused_ to come out as long as other people were there. Lunafreya and Sylvia had been wonderfully understanding and made a hasty retreat... it was such a shame. But Regis knew that Noctis couldn't help the way he reacted; he just needed to process things in his own time, and in his own way.

It was only the promise of this walk on the beach today that had enticed his son out of the closet. They had a bucket and a net, hoping perhaps to catch some crabs or small fish near the shore. Anything to bring a smile back to Noctis' face. That was all that Regis truly wanted for his son, even if it meant he would only connect with very few people. He didn't mind Gladio's father, Clarus, and he was rather fond of Cor too on the odd occasion he was around. The babysitter was a whole other issue altogether.

"What shall we do first, Noct?" he asked over Noctis' mindless humming that he seemed to favour. When his son didn't respond, he gave his little hand a gentle squeeze. "Noctis, what would you like to do?" he asked again. Noctis stopped his humming, probably to consider the question.

"Wanna get crabs," Noctis finally decided, tugging Regis in that direction. There was a small cave not far from their home that was a perfect spot for crab fishing; at night when the tide came in, it was inaccessible, but when the tide lowered during the day, it left small pools of water that were always full of crabs and tiny fish. There was an opening in the rocks above that let in natural sunlight and it was a beautiful little sanctuary that Noctis had fallen in love with.

He stopped at the entrance to the cave, halting Noctis before he could enter as well. Something was _wrong_. There was a dark smear across the rocks leading into the cave, larger at the entrance and narrowing as it moved inside. Something had been dragged through it into the cave.

"Papa?" Noctis questioned, large blue eyes looking up at him in complete confusion. Regis set the bucket and net down, carefully kneeling down in front of Noctis to talk to him.

"Noctis, I need you to wait here for a minute, okay?" he said firmly, but all Noctis did was tilt his head to one side, giving his father a questioning look. "Noctis, promise me you won't move from this spot until I come back, please?" he tried again. Noctis huffed, folding his arms across his chest with a pout. "Promise?" Regis urged.

"...Promise," Noctis mumbled, sitting down to drag his fingers through the sand with a mumble; something about not _wanting_ to wait. Regis gently ruffled his hair, earning a whine and flailing hands from Noctis who tried to pat down the mess his father had made of his hair. “No mess Papa”

"I’m sorry, I’m sorry. Good boy, Noctis. Just shout for me if you need me," he said, rising to his feet. If something was in there, he didn't want Noctis to be in danger... but something told him that he really should check it out.

It was colder inside the cave, water dripping steadily from above in little splashes. Nothing seemed out of the ordinary to begin with. But, as he wandered deeper inside, the feeling that something was wrong increased. There were more of those dark smears, and when he stood on one it felt tacky under his shoe and he left oily footprints afterwards. But, there were other sets of footprints too.

"Hello? Is anyone here?" he called as the cave was getting darker as he was getting further away from the natural light. He had to take out his phone and use the flashlight on it to see.

He found the source of the prints; a pair of discarded boots in a puddle. "Hello?" he called again, scanning around for any sign of life. His foot snagged on something and he couldn't catch himself before he fell, only just protecting his face from total humiliation. Regis rolled over, shining his light over the area.

Limbs; lots of them, all tangled in a bundle and coming from what looked like a woman.

Regis quickly moved to her side and tried to find a pulse at her neck, but there was nothing. Netting was tangled around her upper body, trapping her arms and circling tightly around her neck. Too tightly.

"Oh dear... I'm sorry... I'm too late to help you," he muttered solemnly, brushing her sandy-colored hair out of her face. She was a beautiful woman, even with the lower body of an octopus.

Octomers, they were called. Creatures of the sea with the upper body of a human and the lower body of an octopus. Her limbs were a beautiful shade of coral pink and the color ran up her back and down the length of her arms. They were hunted though, their tentacles and ink fetching a high price as a "delicacy", because humans were cruel creatures.

Regis froze in his observation of her tangled legs when they shifted, and suddenly he could hear a sound he had missed before; a sound not unlike the hitched breaths that came from a long session of crying. Cautiously, he reached out to try and untangle her legs.

He almost fell back when he uncovered the smaller creature safely hidden away under her; another octomer, but one that was only a child. It looked up at him with wide, frightened green eyes for just a moment before the poor thing was trying to pull itself free from where it was tangled, yelling in a panicked language that Regis couldn't understand.

He wasn't sure what to do; the mother had been trapped, possibly by whoever owned those boots. If she had been hunted, then they couldn't have known the child was here, or they would have taken him. But, if they were coming back to harvest the mother... then the child was in danger too. He'd be killed too, without a care in the world and Regis would never live with himself if he let that happen.

So, he reached out, carefully hooking his hands under the boy's arms to lift him out of the confines of his mother's legs. He squirmed and shouted and he was pretty sure the poor thing was crying too, but he couldn't understand him at all. He'd never had contact with a mer, but if they had human bodies then they must have human-like feelings too and this one was clearly afraid.

He pulled the mer into his chest, gently hushing him despite his struggles and brushing his fingers though sandy hair that matched his mother's. It was the same thing he would do for Noctis if he was upset, and slowly... _very slowly_... the mer started to still in his arms.

"There we go, you're alright... you're safe little one," he said softly, gently rocking back and forth. Little hands tangled in his shirt, and cold limbs wrapped around his arms and his waist. The child was still shaking, giving little hiccups from his calmed hysteria. He had to be doing something right at least.

"There you go, that's better. I won't hurt you," he assured, though he doubted the boy knew what he was saying. He pushed himself to stand up and move back towards the entrance, the hand that was stroking the boy's hair now rubbing his back. Oddly, the royal purple color of his back wasn't smooth or slimy like he had expected, but it was just a bit bumpy instead. Not all that unpleasant if you ignored how tightly he could hold on.

The only thing he could do was try to return him to the ocean, but would he survive on his own? What had happened to his father? Was he dead too, or frantically searching for his missing family under the water? Did he even have a father? All questions he had no answers to. All he knew was that the child seemed to recognize that he meant him no harm.

He stilled when he heard a new sound; feet splashing in water. He pressed himself to the cave wall in the hopes that it might be dark enough for them to not be seen; he held the mer close, tucking the boy's face into his neck. He relaxed soon enough when all he found was Noctis, knee-deep in a puddle with a crab hanging from the leg of his shorts.

"Noctis! I told you to wait outside!" Regis said firmly, making his son twirl around quickly to see him and almost tripping over his own feet. Bright blue eyes were locked not on Regis, but rather on the creature in his arms.

Regis hadn't even considered what sort of reaction Noctis might have to the boy. He really didn't get along with other kids, and Noctis didn't particularly like anyone touching his father either. He was very protective of anything he considered to be 'his' and absolutely _hated_ sharing unless it was done on his terms alone.

"Occy," Noctis said. Regis stared at him for a moment, quizzically. "Papa, occy!" Noctis repeated, pointing to the mer tangled around Regis.

"O-oh... yes, it's 'octopus' dear... he's all alone," Regis tried to explain.

"Occy is real uh... ickle," Noctis said, reaching up to prod one of the limbs tangled around his father's waist.

"He's... I'm sorry, pardon?"

"Ickle. Real ickle, like a baby."

"Ickle... he's... oh! You mean he's little! Yes, very little. Almost as little as Noctis," Regis gave a heavy sigh. Noctis wasn't doing so well in his vocabulary lessons.

"Ickle occy... he's uh... an... an Iggy?" Noctis asked curiously as he tried to figure out how to make the two words one.

"Not... not quite Noctis..." Regis muttered. He turned his gaze back to the mer when he lifted his head out of Regis' neck. Curious green eyes turned on Noctis, who was still petting one of his legs.

"We keep, Iggy."

"He's not a _pet,_ Noctis."

"Yeah... keep Iggy," Noctis declared again. The tangled leg he was petting unraveled from around Regis to hook around Noctis' wrist. "I like Iggy," he nodded, a soft little smile crossing his face.

Regis was _lost_. His son, who despised too much physical contact, hated sharing, absolutely loathed the company of strangers... wanted to keep the mer? Perhaps it was his fascination with aquatic creatures that did it, but Regis wasn't going to argue against that smile. He didn't think he could return the child to the ocean; there was no guarantee that he'd be alright.

"Well... alright. I guess you're coming home with us, Iggy... though I think perhaps we'll call you something else... how about Ignis?"

 

~*~*~*~*~*~

 

 _"I beg your pardon... you want me to_ **_what_ ** _?"_

"... I want you to help me build a saltwater pool in the basement."

_"..."_

"..."

 _"Regis, have you_ **_lost your mind_ ** _?"_

"Clarus, I'm serious. I need you to come over tomorrow and help me... don't bring Gladio though, Noctis is uh... in a strange mood."

_"... You're making me dinner."_

"Deal."

 

~*~*~*~*~*~

 

Ignis was a very quick learner. In just a few short months he was already picking up quite a lot of human language. He had taken to Noctis like... well... an octopus to water, as it were. The two of them were currently inseparable, and more than once Regis had found Noctis asleep beside Ignis' pool in the mornings, despite constant lectures that he needed to stay in his bed and, _yes,_ Ignis would still be there in the morning.

But, there was a problem becoming very apparent. Ignis did like to spend time outside of his pool with them and it did him no harm, but he was _terribly_ clumsy; not just because he didn't yet have full control of all those legs on land but because apparently, from what Regis could gather from Ignis' limited Lucian, he was struggling to see.

Regis had researched it a lot. Underwater, things are less visible because of lower levels of natural light. They are blurred by scattering light between the object and the viewer, resulting in lower contrast. The human eye was optimized for sight in the air, but Ignis' eyes were better suited underwater; in other words, he could see perfectly underwater, but not so well in the open air. Just like a diver needed goggles to see properly underwater, they needed to find a solution for Ignis.

But Regis couldn't exactly take Ignis to an optometrist.

"At this rate, he's going to hurt himself. He walked straight into a door frame yesterday. The day before that, he didn't see Noctis behind him and was so startled, he sprayed ink all over the kitchen floor," Regis explained, running a hand down his face in exasperation. He glared at Clarus through his fingers when his oldest friend burst into a fit of laughter. "It's _hardly_ amusing, Clarus!"

"Oh come _on,_ Reggie, the mental image is fantastic," Clarus chuckled, casting his gaze over the boys. Gladio and Ignis were trying to teach Noctis how to swim in Ignis' pool. Gladio was only eight, but he was a great swimmer; Noctis wasn't quite as gifted. It was adorable though, watching Noctis try; he had his little flotation bands around his arms, feet kicking around to get his little body moving while Gladio grumbled about being splashed. Of course, Noctis tried at first to imitate Ignis, who moved so gracefully through the water that it was hard to believe he was so clumsy on land. "I suppose you should ask Sylvia," Clarus suggested.

"Sylvia is a doctor, not an optometrist."

"She might know someone though. Anyone Sylvia can trust, you can too. Have you even told her about him?" Clarus asked curiously, glancing at Regis for just a moment before his attention was back on the boys. Gladio was holding onto Noctis' hands now, reassuring him that he was doing a good job and look how far you've swam already Noct.

"I suppose you're right... but, no, I haven't really spoken to her since we tried to introduce Noctis to Lunafreya. It was an utter disaster and I'm not sure how he'd take to seeing Sylvia again."

"You won't know until you try. With Ignis around, Noctis seems to be coming out of his shell a little more. Perhaps with Ignis at his side this time, he won't struggle as much with meeting her."

"I hope you're right, Clarus. I hope I'm doing the right thing, keeping Ignis here. He's not like us, he's supposed to be free."

"He is free. You wouldn't stop him from going back to the ocean if he asked. It would be hard, especially for Noctis, but you wouldn't stop him. That is freedom. But he's happy here, look at him," Clarus said, waving his hand in their direction. Ignis had himself wrapped around Gladio's back now, his arms folded on Gladio's head lazily despite Gladio's attempts to unravel the limbs around his waist. Noctis was giggling away at them, letting his floats hold him up while his legs swished back and forth under him.

Ignis did look at peace, resting his head on his arms and watching Noctis fondly. One of his legs unwound from Gladio to stretch past him and tap Noctis on the nose, who responded with an excited squeak as he attempted to grab the offending limb. Regis couldn't help but chuckle.

"Yes, I suppose you're right. Those two have become inseparable. It's almost like having two sons," he admitted. "I'll give Sylvia a call and see what she thinks. Thank you, Clarus."

"No problem," Clarus said, pushing himself out of his chair. "Now, payback time for helping you build this damn thing!"

"Clarus, what are you- put me down Clarus! Don't you _dare_!"

Clarus was highly amused to discover that Regis' fully clothed attempt at swimming was about as ungraceful as Noctis' but at least he made a nice big 'splash' when Clarus threw him in.

 

~*~*~*~*~*~

 

Convincing Ignis to eat something _other_ than raw fish was… difficult. The moment Regis had set some toast in front of him one morning, Ignis had looked up at him as if he’d just put a dead kitten on his plate. The octomer sank in his seat, eying the plate over the edge of the table suspiciously; and in response, Noctis too decided he wasn’t eating his breakfast. Regis scratched his head with a deep sigh, dropping himself into his own chair.

“At least _try_ it, Ignis. If you don’t like it, then I won’t make it for you again,” he tried to bargain. Ignis shook his head a little.

“Don’t wanna,” he muttered, lifting a hand to push his new glasses up his nose when they slipped. He still wasn’t used to them, often leaving them sitting somewhere and Regis had never thought that hunting for a child’s misplaced glasses could be so frustrating.

“At least one bite, then I’ll take it away if you don’t like it. I promise, okay?” he tried again, nudging the plate a little closer to him. Ignis gave a thoughtful hum, gripping the edge of the table and peering over it to look at the plate of toast again. He lifted himself up enough to sniff at it, before he retreated again. A single tentacle slithered over the edge of the table towards the plate. “Ah, hands, Ignis,” Regis reminded. Ignis pouted, but the tentacle retreated and he reached out with his hand instead.

One bite turned into two. Two became three. Soon enough, the plate was empty and Ignis looked mortally confused, chewing thoughtfully on his last bite like it was a mystery to be solved. Noctis had eaten all of his breakfast too, seeing that Ignis had eaten his so that was lucky, one tantrum avoided.

“More?” Ignis asked, looking up to Regis curiously.

“Would you like some more?” he asked, and Ignis nodded. “So… what do we say, Ignis?”

“Hmm… please?” Regis offered him a smile and a nod, reaching for the plate piled with toast to put two more slices on Ignis’ plate.

It was a turning point for the octomer. After the toast he had wanted to try more ‘people food’ as he called it and by the end of the day Regis had to wonder how such a small thing could eat _so much_ and not feel sick for it. But, so long as Ignis was finally starting to eat other foods, he wouldn't complain.

 

~*~*~*~*~*~

 

Over the years, Ignis decided that he wanted to learn how to cook. He was a fast learner, and with a few recipe books in his hands, he really started to get the hang of it. Regis was almost envious of all those extra limbs that Ignis had to help him out. Watching him work was pretty magical.

Noctis was ten now, and doing much better socially than he had those years ago when he was first introduced to Lunafreya. The two were good friends now and often wrote little letters to each other. Ignis was growing taller than Noctis, not least of all because of his long tentacles, and he had worked his own age out compared to human years; it seemed that he was about twelve; just older than Noctis and younger than Gladio. It begged the question, did the mers age differently to humans? Unfortunately Ignis wasn’t too sure; they merely measured time differently underwater.

“Hey, Iggy…” Noctis started, shifting in his chair at the table where he had been watching Ignis cook. Regis was tucked away in his office, leaving the two of them to occupy each other like they usually did. But something in Noctis’ tone made Ignis turn around to look at him with concern.

“Is something wrong, Noct?” He asked in a heavy Tenebraen accent. Sylvia had not only set them up with an optometrist, but also with a tutor who had taught him to speak fluent Lucian. He had picked up his tutor’s accent and it had just stuck.

“Do you… y’know… ever think of like… going back?” Noctis asked, nudging a stray fork around the table in front of him. Ignis tipped his head a little, eyes narrowing slightly in confusion.

“Go back? To where, Noct?” He asked curiously.

“Like… to the ocean” Noctis mumbled, not lifting his gaze from the apparently interesting fork. Ignis gave a soft hum, scratching the back of his neck.

“Well… no, not really. I mean, I _have_ thought about it. But there’s nothing for me down there Noct. Not now. It would be like starting all over again and leaving you guys behind. I don’t want that” He said with a little shrug. “Besides, who would hide vegetables in your food if I wasn’t around?” He smirked, prompting Noctis to slam his hands on the table and finally look at him.

“I _knew_ it! I told dad you were sneaky!” He exclaimed, pointing an accusing finger at Ignis, who just poked his tongue out at him in return.

“Well, you haven’t noticed before so vegetables aren't all that bad after all, huh?” Ignis teased.

“I… wha- that’s not how it works!” Noctis pouted.

“Are you boys arguing in here?” Noctis and Ignis both looked over to the door when Regis stepped in, and Noctis settled back into his chair.

“No daddy” He mumbled, and Ignis couldn’t help but giggle as he turned his attention back to dinner.

 

~*~*~*~*~*~

 

“Are you sure this is alright?” Ignis asked, watching Regis and Noctis as they put their shoes on.

“Of course, Ignis,” Regis assured.

“What if someone sees me?”

“No one will see you.”

“What if they do?”

“Ignis, it’s two in the morning, _no one_ will be on the beach,” Noctis said, covering a yawn with his hand, which made Ignis smile fondly. Noctis _loved_ his sleep, so the fact that he was awake right now because of something _Ignis_ wanted to do, was pretty special.

Ignis was sixteen now and had only gone down to the ocean a handful of times, and never had he gone for a swim. He had only ever gone far enough into the water to cover his tentacles. Tonight… he wanted to swim. Just for a little while, he wanted to return to the ocean and feel like ocean creature that he was. He hadn’t expected his little adoptive family to indulge him so readily… he knew that Noctis worried about it, especially.

He knew he was a bit jumpy and on edge, but he truly did worry about being seen. Even after all these years, nothing had really changed about the way people saw creatures like him. He didn’t mind staying home all the time, really. Regis had a large, comfortable and somewhat secluded home, and Gladio often visited with Clarus. Sylvia and Lunafreya would come to see them sometimes too.

But he did _so_ wish he could go places like Regis and Noctis did. He would love to experience a market, or a store. To see a city towering over his head so high it looked like the buildings could touch the sky. That was how Noctis had explained it to him once, at least. A forest, full of trees and ringing with birdsong. A field, full of flowers or wheat. But they were all things that he couldn’t experience. Places that he couldn’t go. He needed to be able to return to his pool when it felt like his lower body was drying out and starting to become uncomfortable.

He barely even realized that they had already made it down to the beach. Noctis was right, not a soul was around at this time of the morning. It was silent and peaceful, other than the waves gently lapping against the shore. Or perhaps a yawn from Noctis who probably just wanted to curl up and sleep. Despite the early hour, it couldn’t have been cold because Regis and Noctis hadn’t bothered with any coats; just comfortable sweaters. Ignis had always found that his body just adjusted to the temperature around him… maybe that was a benefit of being a mer-creature.

“Go ahead Ignis, we’ll wait for you right here” Regis assured, laying a towel out across the sand, which he and Noctis settled onto. Ignis could see the way Regis tried to hide his flinch; his knee was acting up again, but he said nothing about it. He never did.

“Are you-”

“Go on Iggy, you wanted this, right?” Noctis said, leaning back on his hands and crossing his legs at the ankle. “You’ve only got a few hours before the sun will start coming up. Don’t wanna be here when the early fishers come,” he reminded him.

Ignis heaved a sigh, but nodded. Noctis was right. It was now or never and he didn’t want their effort to be wasted. He carefully unbuttoned his shirt, folding it up before he let Regis take it. Ignis… didn’t usually like to show off too much of his body. The purple across his back and shoulders, trailing down his arms and dotting around his sides. Even trailing along his cheekbones, under his eyes in a shape that followed the shape of his glasses, which he removed and let Regis take too. That and his pointed ears were the only thing that stopped him from looking human from the waist up, when he was wearing a shirt.

He still found himself hesitating a little as he wandered to the water’s edge, sinking deeper into the water one tentacle at a time. It felt _good_ , it always did. Real saltwater, instead of his artificial pool which was now full of various shells, rocks and seaweeds that Noctis would bring home after a fishing trip to make his pool feel more real. But it just couldn’t compare to the real thing, lapping at his waist as he worked his way in deeper and deeper.

He cast a look back to Regis and Noctis, who both just offered him a small wave from the shore. Maybe he shouldn't… no, he needed this. Even if it was just once. He took in a deep breath, before plunging himself under the water and swimming down deeper. His vision adjusted almost immediately, just like it did in his pool. There wasn’t much to see so close to the surface, but he was starting to feel a little more confident, venturing down to see what he could find.

Noctis sighed as Ignis disappeared from the surface. He kept his eyes locked on that spot, waiting for him to come back. He didn’t turn his head when his father laid a hand on his shoulder. “What is that deep sigh for?” Regis asked.

“Nothin’ really…” Noctis muttered, pulling his knees up to his chest so he could wrap his arms around his legs.

“I know you better than that, Noctis. What’s bothering you?” he asked again. Noctis still remained silent for a few more minutes.

“What if he prefers it down there, dad? What if he decides to leave and live down in the ocean again…?” Noctis asked quietly. Regis sighed softly, wrapping his arm around Noctis’ shoulders.

“My son, if that is a decision that Ignis makes… then we simply must learn to accept it,” he said gently.

“I don’t want him to go…”

“Nor do I. But it would be unfair of us to force him to stay, if he became unhappy with his life. He has little in the way of freedom with us, Noctis. I long ago had to accept that perhaps one day he would ask to leave. He is, after all, a creature of the sea,” Regis explained. It didn’t really seem to improve Noctis’ mood, but he needed to understand that Ignis’ needs and desires had to come before their own.

They sat there for hours, in comfortable silence to appreciate the ambient sounds of the beach. The sun was just beginning to peek up over the horizon and they were leaning more against each other as it got harder and harder to keep themselves awake. Regis was pretty sure Noctis nodded off a few times, and he might have done the same at least once. But they both startled awake at a particularly large splash, sitting upright and looking around to find the source.

Then it happened again; closer now as Ignis’ head appeared from under the water, shaking the water from his hair for a moment as he came out of the water, at least up to his waist. The sun was just beginning to cast its light over the horizon, giving the mer a soft, glowing outline… he didn’t look as happy as they had thought he would. Noctis shifted to stand up, walking up to the edge of the water until it lapped at his boots.

“Iggy…? You okay?” he asked as Ignis came closer too.

“Yes, I’m alright just… I suppose I had expected to see more…” he admitted quietly. Noctis frowned at that.

“You were hoping to see others like you…?”

“I… I believe I was. But I can only assume that my kind don’t come this close to the beaches. I’d have to go further into the open ocean; deeper underwater. But honestly, it was still beautiful. So many different creatures deeper down that we just don’t get to see from up here. Oh, and I found this,” he said, holding out his hand for Noctis to see.

“Huh… a pocket watch?” Noctis took it from Ignis’ hands to look it over, flipping it open. It had clearly been under there for a long time because it was full of water and the metal parts were rusting. But inside the lid were the initials ‘C.S’. “And here I thought you’d bring me back some new, rare fish” he teased lightly.

“Perhaps next time,” Ignis chuckled.

“So you wanna go again…?” Noctis asked carefully.

“...I don’t want to go too far. But there is plenty still to see under there and maybe I’ll be able to find some other interesting things. It was refreshing to swim more freely. I really wish I could show you what it’s like under there.”

“But you’re not leaving?” Noctis asked, though he quickly looked down at his boots. Ignis smiled fondly.

“I’m not leaving, Noct… you’re stuck with me forever. Who would hide vegetables in your food if I wasn’t around?” he teased, splashing some water at Noctis to make him yelp.

“Uh! You are the _worst_ big brother!” Noctis complained loudly, which just made Ignis laugh. Yeah, maybe it was mean to tease Noctis about his vegetables so much; but it was satisfying.

Why would he need others like him, when he had family like Noctis?


End file.
